NorthWest Sports Blog brings you daily features on Oregon, Washington State, and BC amateur and pro sports teams.
NWSB Editor Bryant Knox previous the upcoming Oregon Ducks season for new head coach Mark Helfrich. Helfrich enters the season with a talented roster, including Marcus Mariota and De’Anthony Thomas, on his side. He also has a favorable schedule and a top-5 standing to start the year. The problem is that success has been redefined at Oregon, meaning anything less than a championship will be a disappointment.
NWSB Editor and Insider Chris Anderson talks about 5 underrated players on the Oregon Ducks’ football team heading into 2013. Now an annual college football powerhouse, the Ducks are once again loaded and primed for a run at the Pac-12 and BCS National Championship. Star players such as Marcus Mariota, De’Anthony Thomas, and Ifo Ekpre-Olomu give Oregon quite the potency on both offense and defense. Yet it is not just their efforts that will bring them to glory.
NWSB Editor and Insider Chris Anderson talks about the top 5 games on Oregon’s schedule in 2013. While the schedule is riddled with high-profile contests and nationally televised games, none are more enticing than games against Tennessee, Washington, Stanford, Oregon State, and UCLA. Tennessee will become the first SEC in quite some time to make the trip to Autzen, signaling the first great game of 2013 for the Ducks.
NWSB Editor breaks down why the Oregon Ducks’ De’Anthony Thomas and Marcus Mariota are Heisman Trophy hopefuls entering the 2013 college football season. According to Cappers Picks, Thomas is a 14/1 odds favorite while Mariota is 16/1. Both players are among the top 11 Heisman favorites, and the only other Pac-12 player to make the list is Marquis Lee out of USC.
NWSB Editor and Insider Chris Anderson gives you his 5 most important players on Oregon’s offense in 2013. Though Chip Kelly is now long-gone from the program and looking to build a solid career at the NFL with the Philadelphia Eagles, the Ducks’ offense will remain essentially the same under new head coach Mark Helfrich. That doesn’t mean, however, that there won’t be some changes to Oregon’s offense in 2013
NWSB Editor and Insider Chris Anderson tells you why the Oregon Ducks football program has a very good chance at going undefeated in their next season. The Ducks football program, in recent years, has been the figurehead of college football in the northwest and Pac-12. While an undefeated season is a lofty goal for any college football program, Oregon could realistically achieve this feat in 2013.
NWSB Editor and Insider Chris Anderson details who he thinks will be the 2013 defensive starters for the Oregon Ducks football team. Losing seniors is tough, but when some of the top talent on your team, it gets even tougher. The absences of Michael Clay, Kiko Alonso, Dion Jordan, and Isaac Remington will surely be felt next year, especially with the four of them taking two valuable players from the defensive line and linebacking corps.
NWSB Editor and Insider Chris Anderson recaps where the Oregon Ducks went in the NFL Draft this year. Five players were drafted from the University of Oregon in 2013, marking the most players in four years that were previously Ducks. Headlining the crew of drafted players was Dion Jordan, who was selected as the No. 3 overall pick by the Miami Dolphins. Kyle Long also went in the first round, being the 20th pick overall and going to the Chicago Bears.
NWSB Editor and Insider Chris Anderson gives you three things to watch for at this year’s Oregon spring football game. Though we aren’t anticipating him to put everything out on the table in terms of scheme and design, watching the way Helfrich works with his players and coaches will be one of the main things to watch next Saturday. But that isn’t the only thing to pay attention to.
NWSB Editor and Insider Chris Anderson talks about the recent documents that were released that show the Oregon Ducks and NCAA have agreed that the Ducks committed major violations during Chip Kelly’s tenure. While I would never want a football program that I support to be involved in any sort of scandal, everything that Oregon has stated–as well as the NCAA–points to the fact that Oregon’s coaches were unaware that they were committing violations.
NWSB Editor and Insider Chris Anderson talks about what improvements the Ducks could make on the offensive side of the ball to give them a near-perfect offense in 2013. And while there aren’t many improvements to make, the Ducks need to build their offensive line, focus on establishing a dominant receiver, and finding a kicker who can consistently make field goals in crucial moments of games.
NWSB Editor and Insider Chris Anderson talks about the weaknesses on Oregon’s 2013 college football roster that could see them fall from the ranks of the college football elite. While the talent is already on the team and there is quite a lot of potential surrounding the Duck athletes, Oregon is lacking proven players on the defensive line and at linebacker.
